Stats SA: Unemployment dips to 31.4% but youth crisis remains

South Africa's official unemployment rate fell slightly to 31.4% in the fourth quarter of 2025, according to the latest Quarterly Labour Force Survey (QLFS) released by Statistics South Africa (Stats SA).

While the small decline offers cautious optimism, experts warn that structural challenges in the labour market remain, particularly for young people and those outside formal employment.

The QLFS shows that employment rose by 44,000 to 17.1 million, while the number of unemployed decreased by 172,000 to 7.8 million compared with the third quarter of 2025.

“This resulted in a decrease of 128,000, or 0.5%, in the labour force over the same period,” Stats SA reported.

“The official unemployment rate decreased by 0.5 of a percentage point, from 31.9% in Q3 2025 to 31.4% in Q4 2025,” the agency said.

The youth unemployment rate increased by 0,1 of a percentage point to 43,8% in the fourth quarter of 2025.

Labour underutilisation and discouraged workers

While headline unemployment improved slightly, the survey highlights that many South Africans remain outside the labour market. The number of discouraged job-seekers increased by 233,000 to 3.7 million, while other available job-seekers decreased by 110,000 to 855,000, and unavailable job-seekers decreased by 41,000 to 42,000.

This meant that the total potential labour force population, people who were available but not actively seeking work, or unavailable but seeking, increased by 82,000 to 4.6 million. “Others outside the labour force increased by 165,000 to 12.5 million, bringing the total outside the labour force to 17.1 million in Q4 of 2025,” Stats SA noted.

Expert perspective: cautious optimism

Dr Memuna Williams, founder and CEO of Empowering Sustainable Change, said the modest improvements in the official figures offer some encouragement but do not solve long-term challenges.

“The decrease in the official unemployment rate is a positive signal, but millions of South Africans remain disconnected from meaningful work or training,” Williams said. “To address this, targeted interventions in skills development, youth employment, and entrepreneurship are critical. Stabilising numbers are only the first step; inclusive economic participation is the real goal.”

The latest QLFS data also points to structural pressures in the labour market, with a large pool of discouraged and potential workers who could be absorbed into the economy if appropriate opportunities and skills support were in place, Williams added.

“Policy, business, and education need to focus not just on creating jobs, but on creating pathways for those who are currently on the margins of the labour market,” Williams added.

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